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Resident seeks to buy city alley; council flags hazards, costs and planning steps
Summary
Boyce Sanderson asked to purchase a strip of city property; council members who viewed the alley cited an open drain ditch, broken steps and handrails and said planning, surveying, rezoning and sensitive‑lands review would be required before any sale.
Charles Davis recounted inspecting the city‑owned alley in question and described safety and maintenance concerns, including an open drain ditch, damaged steps and missing handrails. Davis recommended caution and noted that if the city used those conditions to deny a sale, the city would still face costs to make the area safe for pedestrians.
The applicant, Boyce Sanderson, told the council he had seen the site and remained interested but was hesitant to accept responsibility for maintaining pedestrian access and potential liability. "I'm still interested in doing that... I'm a little concerned about owning that and then having someone get hurt on that property," Sanderson said. Council members said the proposal would require surveying, planning and zoning review, potential rezoning, consideration of sensitive‑lands constraints (noting potential Superfund sensitivity) and clear agreements about who would pay for improvements if a sale were to proceed.
